Entrepreneurs based in Africa’s 33 least developed countries (LDCs) are losing out on e-commerce opportunities due to a number of barriers, according to the 2018 United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad) Least Developed Nations report. They range from insufficient data services and high costs for broadband and/or mobile Internet to poor energy and transport infrastructure and the lack of effective trade logistics and crossborder facilitation measures. There are, however, examples of where entrepreneurs in LDCs are overcoming the barriers. “Development of local e-commerce platforms, including rural e-commerce can help to counter restrictions imposed by global e-commerce companies on participation of local vendors on their platforms. “E-commerce can provide a growing entrepreneurial and development opportunity in LDCs, if more producers and consumers in LDCs can link to e-commerce platforms and if policies for building entrepreneurial and productive capacities prove effective,” says the report.
